Skyview ninth grader arrested for threatening to shoot students

Share this story

VANCOUVER, Wash. – A ninth grader at Skyview High School was arrested Thursday for threatening to bring a gun to school and shoot students, the Clark County Sheriff’s Office said.

Security at the school took the 15-year-old boy into the office without incident as soon as staff found out about the threat, according to the sheriff’s office. The student had made statements to his peers and showed them a website where he would get a weapon, the sheriff’s office said.

Clark County Sheriff’s Office school resource officers investigated and arrested the student. He was taken to juvenile detention.

According to court documents, the suspect said he was joking around with friends during a math class. His friends joked they would beat him up. The suspect said he told them he would bring a gun to school and kill them.

One of the suspect's friends told police that the threats of bringing a gun to school began about two weeks ago and have been getting worse, the court documents said. He told police he thought the suspect was getting serious about killing people.

According to the court documents, one of the suspect's friends recorded a short audio clip on his phone. On it, the suspect can be heard saying he was going to kill everyone, the court documents said.

The sheriff’s office said it would not release the boy’s name.

“Clark County Sheriff's Office School Resource Officers make an effort to use every alternative to arrest and incarceration when appropriate however, we take all threats of violence at our schools very seriously,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement.

According to the sheriff’s office, it didn’t appear the boy had access to weapons at his home.

The investigation is ongoing.

The boy faces a charge of felony harassment. He appeared in court Friday. He was arraigned Monday, March 31.